


An Outpouring of Love

by Ambra_Sue



Category: Good Omens (TV), Good Omens - Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett
Genre: Alcohol, Alternate Universe - Human, Bartender Aziraphale, Blink and you'll miss the side characters, But he's not disposed off, But not with Aziraphale, Confident Aziraphale (Good Omens), Crowley has game, Crowley is a Mess (Good Omens), Eric the Disposable Demon - Freeform, Happy Ending, Human AU, M/M, Meet-Cute, Pining Crowley (Good Omens), Thirsty Crowley (Good Omens)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-22
Updated: 2021-02-22
Packaged: 2021-03-12 19:14:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,319
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29639337
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ambra_Sue/pseuds/Ambra_Sue
Summary: Crowley goes out for a drink. He doesn’t expect to be more thirsty after he gets to the bar than he was before, but the hot new bartender at his favourite club makes him absolutely parched.
Relationships: Aziraphale/Crowley (Good Omens)
Comments: 19
Kudos: 94





	An Outpouring of Love

**Author's Note:**

> Thirsty Crowley and Confident Aziraphale is one of my favourite pairings, I really like writing them. Also, rolled up shirtsleeves and bartending, has got to be done!
> 
> A heartfelt thank you to my lovely beta, [Aunt_Aziraphale](/users/Aunt_Aziraphale/) who turned this around in record time!

Crowley is fixing his hair in front of the mirror, working it to get just that edge of being effortlessly tousled. The new style looked good, if he could say so himself, short on the sides, and longer on top. It’s been a couple of weeks since he went out clubbing, he’s been drowning in work and has managed to work up an itch for loud music, bad food and good alcohol, and if he can pull someone to get another kind of itch scratched, well then that’s more than fine. Finally satisfied with his hair, he double-checks the rest of his outfit, tight black jeans, black and grey blazer and a dark burgundy silk shirt with just enough buttons undone, and glances at his phone. Shit, he really needs to get going, Bee and the rest of them will be at Eden way before him at this rate, and he doesn’t relish drinking to catch up with them. He might still be shy of his 35th birthday, but it isn’t by much and he had to admit his hangovers have been worse these days, especially speed-drinking.

The music was pumping when he entered the club, and he could feel all his problems at work melting away at the beat of the bass. Bee waved when Crowley made his way to their table.

“We already got our first round, Mr. Late, go get yours, and then we’re hitting the floor. They’ve got a new bartender, and rumour has it he makes amazing drinks.” Bee, of course, had a glass of red wine, and the rest had started on beers.

“Alright, alright, keep your pants on, Bee” Crowley mock-scowls, but he feels to damn good to put much effort in it. This was going to be a good night, he could feel it. He’d already caught a few looks entering the club, and his scowl changes into a smirk when he catches the eyes of a brunette two tables over.

Sauntering his way to the bar Crowley tries to catch a glimpse of the new bartender, because someone who made it into Bee’s gossip was sure to be something special. At first, he only saw the Erics, jokingly called because you never saw one without the other, but at the other end he sees a blond head behind the bar. Blond hair was new, so he changes his path to end up at that end of the bar. Once there, his eyes were caught by the bottles moving and flashing, flying between the bartender’s hands, and Crowley watches, fascinated. He loves drinks, but he’s never seen anyone pour with this kind of flair, and definitely not at this club. Then his gaze moves to the rest of the man behind the bar, and Crowley feels like he’s swallowed his tongue. Big hazel eyes, white-blond hair like a halo around his head, and a body just on the other side of soft. The bartender combined an old-fashioned waistcoat, rolled up shirtsleeves and expertly applied eyeshadow, and Crowley was a goner in five seconds flat. As a matter of fact, he was impressed that he was still able to stand.

“So, my dear, what’s your poison?”

The blond bartender leaned over towards him to be heard over the music, cocks his head, and shit, it should be illegal to be that gorgeous. Crowley’s mouth was working, but no words made it out.

“What can I get you? Or do you need some time to decide?”

“Ngh, I’ll, I’ll have a Manhattan. Erhm, please?”

“A Manhattan coming right up” The bartender winks at him, winks! Like Crowley’s legs didn’t have enough of a hard time fighting against gravity as it was. Then the blond man starts mixing his drink, bottles spinning, and Crowley starts salivating. He has no memory of paying and made his way back to the table and his friends in a daze, all thoughts of pulling some anonymous stranger at the end of the night quite gone.

Zira was in a good mood all evening. He loved his job, and he felt right at home at Eden even though he’d only worked there for a couple of weeks. Having honed his craft in New York for the last few years he’d finally felt homesick for London and decided to come back. Anathema had hired him for Eden as soon as she’d heard he’d be moving back. He knew he wouldn’t have a hard time finding a job with his skillset, but he preferred to work with friends if possible, so here he was. He’d made a good choice, he could feel it, and the patrons seemed to appreciate both his drinks and his flair in pouring if the tips were anything to go by. As the club started to fill up and he got busier he still tried to keep an eye out for the good-looking redhead that’d been in last week, hoping that the man would come back. He seemed to know his way around the club, so he might be a regular, or so Zira hoped. A bit silly to get hung up on a man he’d only met once, not counting Crowley coming back for two more Manhattans, but those cheekbones and that body hadn’t left Zira’s thoughts in a week. Focusing for a few moments on pouring, with a few extra tricks thrown in, he didn’t notice that the man he’d spent most of last week thinking about had come up to the bar.

“Erhm, hi” Crowley prayed for a miracle to keep his voice steady.

“Oh, hello. What can I get you today?” The bartender’s smile was beaming, and Crowley again feels like his legs take on a life of their own. He tries keeping his cool, but he also knew since last week that his normal suave style went right out the window as soon as he set foot near the blond bartender. He did have a plan for this part though, he’d prepared for this and he leaned on the bar trying to look calm and composed.

“Why don’t you choose this time? I’m sure I can’t go wrong with anything you mix.”

Another bright smile flashed towards him. “I think I know just the thing, my dear.”

Crowley’s eyes tracked the movement of those strong hands and muscular forearms. He found it decidedly unfair when the bartender started balancing bottles, drawing even more of his attention to just below his rolled-up shirtsleeves. The drink was finished way to soon if Crowley had anything to say about it.

“Here you go, dear” The bartender slid the highball glass over the bar and waited for the first sip.

“This is really good! What is it? Oh, and I’m Crowley by the way.” Crowley congratulated himself on his coherence, and for following his plan. Hopefully, he’d get a name to the man of his dreams now.

“Nice to meet you Crowley, I’m Zira. It’s called a Dark and Stormy, I though it suited you.” The blond man winks again, even though he’s already busy mixing a drink Eric had shouted from the other end of the bar. Crowley blushed and spluttered into the drink, mumbling something about meeting up with friends and left the bar, simultaneously kicking himself while leaving for not staying and flirting.

Over the following weeks, Crowley always asked Zira to choose his drinks, and Zira made it a point to mix as many different drinks as possible for Crowley, always pouring with as much flair as his considerable skills allowed. He was fairly certain the redhead was interested in him, but even though they’d managed some small talk during lulls Crowley only blushed and mumbled incoherently as soon as Zira tried flirting with him. He seemed relaxed enough with his friends, from the glimpses Zira’d had of them. The bartender couldn’t figure out what was wrong.

“Hey Zira, your admirer is back.” One of the Erics elbowed him teasingly in the ribs. “When are you going to reel him in, you can’t just keep him dangling like this.”

“I’ll have you know I’ve done basically everything except throw myself on him over the bar, but he just can’t take a hint. He’s not even really flirting with me, and I don’t know what to do about it.” Zira frowned and kept on wiping down the speed well and changing empty bottles.

“Maybe you need to hit him over the head with it, make sure there is no room for misunderstandings?”

Zira sighs. “Maybe you’re right, my dear. I’ll think of something.”

The next time Crowley came to the club, Zira was the one with a plan.

“Hello, my dear. The usual, want me to choose?” Crowley nods, leaning on the bar, rolling his head, and trying to get the cricks out from a day at the office. This early in the evening there wasn’t really a crowd, and Crowley had started coming in earlier to be able to talk to Zira a bit more. The way the bartender moved was almost hypnotizing, and it took Crowley a while to notice that the blond man was pouring two drinks instead of one.

“Nnhn, Zira, it’s not two for one today, is it?” Crowley looks around, trying to see if he missed something.

“Not at all, my dear, I thought I’d join you” Zira was all smiles when he slid the drinks over the shiny surface and exchanged a few words with one of the Erics before slipping around the bar. “I thought we could get one of the tables in the back?”

Not knowing exactly what just happened, Crowley still follows to a free table, sitting down across from his crush.

“It’s nice to see you, my dear” Zira takes a sip of the drink and moans a little “Oh, this is my favourite, I hope you don’t mind I chose this today”

Since Crowley’s brain had gone offline with that moan, and was taking its time to reboot, he ended up with simply. “’S good, I like it. I, erhm, I like your name, too.” He wants to bang his head on the table in frustration. He finally, finally has a chance of a decent conversation with the man he’s more than halfway in love with, and this is what his brain comes up with.

“It’s actually short for Aziraphale, my parents obviously didn’t believe in making it easy for me in school.” Zira rolls his eyes. “Can you imagine how many times I was asked to spell it?”

Crowley snorts and then smiles, relaxing the tiniest amount. “Aziraphale, it’s a nice name though.”

“Apparently the name of a lesser-known angel, my siblings got all of the good ones. Gabriel, Uriel, Michael. Although one of my cousins got stuck with Sandalphon, so I guess I could’ve had it worse.”

“Well, you look like an angel” Crowley blurts out, mouth completely disconnected from his brain.

“I do?” Zira blushes lightly and smiles. That was the first actual compliment he’d gotten from the other man, and he was thrilled.

Crowley waves his hand at the blond. “With your hair and your eyes, and you know, being you.” He immediately looks down at the drink in his hands, not being able to look at Zira’s widening smile, words once again being something he couldn’t quite string together.

“Look, I really need to ask.” Zira hesitates and his smile falters. “Do you, are you interested in me? In this? It’s just, I can’t really tell. Sometimes I feel that you are, and sometimes I’m just not sure. I don’t want to be that guy, the one that can’t take a hint. I’ve been on the other side of that far too many times.”

Crowleys head snaps up. “Um… Yes, no, I mean yes. Yes, I’m definitely interested in this. Us. You.” He scrubbed one hand over his face, trying to pull himself together and make coherent sentences. In no way is he going to fuck this up because he couldn’t get his brain to work properly when he’s within 5 feet of the absolutely gorgeous bartender. He used to be good at this, or at least, you know, able to talk. “Look, Zira, I’m going to say something and pray to Go.. Sat… Someone, that it doesn’t have you running for the hills when I’m done, alright?”

Zira nods, cocking his head in the way that makes Crowley want to lick his way up that neck, and that line of thinking is very much not helping he scolds himself. Taking a deep breath, he just starts talking before he can change his mind.

“I think you’re the most beautiful person I’ve ever seen, and I just can’t get my fucking brain to work around you. I’ve been more or less gone over you since the first time I saw you, and your smile damn near makes my legs give out, and...”

He stops when he feels a hand on his.

“Darling, I think it’s my turn to say something now.” Crowley looks up and feels like he is looking into the sun, Zira beaming at him. “Do you know how much my co-workers tease me about all the flair I use on your drinks? But it was the only way I could think of to impress you, and I really, really wanted to impress you.“

“You did? You do?” Crowley manages around what feels like actual fucking butterflies in his stomach.

“Of course. Have you looked at yourself? You look like temptation incarnate, my dear, and I would say that temptation is very much accomplished.” The blond man’s eyes darken minutely as his gaze moves to Crowley’s lips. “You know” Zira all but purrs “I do have a few tricks I don’t do at the bar”

Crowley feels his throat suddenly go dry “R… really?”

“How would you like a private showing, my dear?”


End file.
